Editing Sexual minority

{{Short description|Social group differentiated by its sexual orientation or gender identity}}

A '''sexual minority''' is a group whose [[sexual identity]], [[sexual orientation|orientation]] or [[human sexual behavior|practices]] differ from the majority of the surrounding society. Primarily used to refer to [[LGBT|lesbian, gay, bisexual]], or [[non-heterosexual]] individuals,<ref>{{cite book|last1=Sullivan|first1=Michael K.|title=Sexual Minorities: Discrimination, Challenges, and Development in America|date=2003|publisher=Haworth Social Work Practice Press|isbn=9780789002358|edition=illustrated|quote=SUMMARY. This chapter explores the cultural, religious, and sociological underpinnings of homophobia and intolerance toward homosexuals.|ol=8151801M}}</ref><ref name = CDC2016>{{cite web | publisher = Centers for Disease Control and Prevention | date = August 11, 2016 | title = Sexual Identity, Sex of Sexual Contacts, and Health-Related Behaviors Among Students in Grades 9–12 — United States and Selected Sites, 2015; Morbidity and Mortality Weekly Report (MMWR) | volume = 65 | number = 9 | url = https://www.cdc.gov/mmwr/volumes/65/ss/ss6509a1.htm | access-date = March 20, 2017 |
first1 = Laura | last1 = Kann 
| first2 = Emily | last2 = O’Malley Olsen 
|first3 = Tim | last3 = McManus 
|first4 = William A. | last4 = Harris |display-authors=etal 
}}</ref><!-- Shari L. Shanklin, Katherine H. Flint Barbara Queen Richard Lowry  David Chyen  Lisa Whittle,  Jemekia Thornton,  Connie Lim, Yoshimi Yamakawa, ; Nancy Brener, ; Stephanie Zaza, --> it can also refer to [[transgender]],<ref>{{cite web|title=Definition of Terms - "Sexual Minority"|url=http://geneq.berkeley.edu/lgbt_resources_definiton_of_terms#sexual_minority|publisher=Gender Equity Resource Center|access-date=12 March 2015}}</ref> [[non-binary gender|non-binary]] (including [[third gender]]<ref>{{cite news|last1=Sharma|first1=Gopal|title=Nepal to issue passports with third gender for sexual minorities|url=http://uk.reuters.com/article/uk-nepal-lgbt-passports-idUKKBN0KG0RS20150107|access-date=12 March 2015|publisher=Reuters|date=7 January 2015}}</ref>) or [[intersex]] individuals.

Variants include '''GSM''' ("Gender and Sexual Minorities"),<ref>{{cite web|title=Gender and Sexual Minority Students (LGBTIQA)|url=http://www.derby.ac.uk/campus/support/gender-and-sexual-minority-students/|publisher=University of Derby|access-date=12 March 2015}}</ref> '''GSRM''' ("Gender, Sexual and Romantic Minorities") ,<ref>{{Citation|last1=Choudhuri|first1=Devika Dibya|title=Multiplicity of LGBTQ+ Identities, Intersections, and Complexities|date=2019-09-20|url=http://dx.doi.org/10.4324/9780429447297-1|work=Rethinking LGBTQIA Students and Collegiate Contexts|pages=3–16|publisher=Routledge|isbn=978-0-429-44729-7|access-date=2021-06-09|last2=Curley|first2=Kate|doi=10.4324/9780429447297-1|s2cid=210355997}}</ref><ref>{{Citation|last=Lapointe|first=Alicia|title=Postgay|date=2016|url=https://doi.org/10.1057/978-1-137-55425-3_21|work=Critical Concepts in Queer Studies and Education: An International Guide for the Twenty-First Century|pages=205–218|editor-last=Rodriguez|editor-first=Nelson M.|series=Queer Studies and Education|place=New York|publisher=Palgrave Macmillan US|language=en|doi=10.1057/978-1-137-55425-3_21|isbn=978-1-137-55425-3|access-date=2021-06-09|editor2-last=Martino|editor2-first=Wayne J.|editor3-last=Ingrey|editor3-first=Jennifer C.|editor4-last=Brockenbrough|editor4-first=Edward}}</ref> and '''GSD''' ("[[Gender and Sexual Diversity]]").<ref>[http://www.pinknews.co.uk/2013/02/25/organisation-proposes-replacing-the-limiting-term-lgbt-with-more-inclusive-gsd/ Organisation proposes replacing the 'limiting' term LGBT with 'more inclusive' GSD], February 25, 2013</ref> They have been considered in academia,{{efn|See also: [[LGBT#Variants|Variants of the term "LGBT"]].}} but it is '''SGM''' ("Sexual and Gender Minority") that has gained the most advancement since 2014.<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www.hivlawandpolicy.org/resources/sexual-gender-minority-youth-los-angeles-foster-care-bianca-dm-wilson-khush-cooper|title=Sexual & Gender Minority Youth in Los Angeles Foster Care, Bianca D.M. Wilson, Khush Cooper, Angeliki Kastanis, Sheila Nezhad, The Williams Institute, 2014 {{!}} The Center for HIV Law and Policy|website=www.hivlawandpolicy.org|access-date=2019-03-04}}</ref>  In 2015, the [[National Institutes of Health|NIH]] announced the formation of the Sexual and Gender Minority Research Office<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://dpcpsi.nih.gov/sgmro|title=Sexual & Gender Minority Research Office {{!}} DPCPSI|website=dpcpsi.nih.gov|access-date=2019-03-04}}</ref> and numerous professional<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://adaa.org/sexual-gender-minority-individuals|title=Anxiety and Depression in Sexual and Gender Minority Individuals|website=adaa.org|language=en|access-date=2019-03-04}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web|url=https://fenwayhealth.org/the-fenway-institute/education/advancing-excellence-in-sexual-and-gender-minority-health/|title=Advancing Excellence in Sexual and Gender Minority Health {{!}} Fenway Health: Health Care Is A Right, Not A Privilege.|website=fenwayhealth.org|date=8 November 2018|language=en-us|access-date=2019-03-04}}</ref> and academic<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://williamsinstitute.law.ucla.edu/research/sex-gender-minority-kenya/|title=Sexual and Gender Minorities in Western Kenya|date=2019-01-30|website=Williams Institute|language=en-US|access-date=2019-03-04|archive-date=2019-03-06|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190306045139/https://williamsinstitute.law.ucla.edu/research/sex-gender-minority-kenya/|url-status=dead}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web|url=https://isgmh.northwestern.edu/resources/|title=Resources|date=2016-11-08|website=ISGMH|language=en-US|access-date=2019-03-04}}</ref> institutions have adopted this term.

''Sexual and gender minority'' is an umbrella term that encompasses populations included in the acronym "LGBTI" ([[lesbian]], [[gay]], [[bisexual]], transgender and intersex), and those whose sexual orientation or gender identity varies. It includes those who may not self-identify as LGBTI (e.g., [[queer]], [[Questioning (sexuality and gender)|questioning]], [[two-spirit]], [[Asexuality|asexual]], [[men who have sex with men]], [[gender variant]]), or those who have a specific medical condition affecting reproductive development (e.g., individuals with differences or [[disorders of sex development]], who sometimes identify as intersex).<ref>https://www.edi.nih.gov/sites/default/files/EDI_Public_files/sgm-strategic-plan.pdf {{Bare URL PDF|date=March 2022}}</ref>

== Origins ==
The term ''sexual minority'' was most likely coined in the late 1960s under the influence of [[Lars Ullerstam]]'s book ''The Erotic Minorities: A Swedish View'', which is strongly in favor of tolerance and empathy to [[paraphilia]]s such as [[paedophilia]] and uncommon sexualities in which people were labeled "sex criminals".<ref name=GSM1>{{cite web|last1=Lattimer|first1=Julia|title=GSM acronym better than LGBT alphabet soup|url=http://www.collegiatetimes.com/opinion/gsm-acronym-better-than-lgbt-alphabet-soup/article_f7a325a4-5acd-11e4-bf0d-001a4bcf6878.html|work=Collegiate Times|access-date=11 June 2015}}</ref> The term was used as analogous to [[ethnic|ethnic minority]].<ref>{{cite web|last1=DeGagne|first1=Alexa|title=Queering the language of 'sexual minorities' in Canada|url=http://www.congress2013.ca/blog/queering-language-sexual-minorities-canada|work=University of Alberta|access-date=11 June 2015|date=6 October 2011|url-status=dead|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150612220449/http://www.congress2013.ca/blog/queering-language-sexual-minorities-canada|archive-date=12 June 2015}}</ref><ref>{{cite book|last1=Ullerstam|first1=Lars|title=The Erotic Minorities: A Swedish View|date=1967|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=whGGAAAAIAAJ|access-date=12 March 2015}}</ref>

Scientists such as [[Ritch Savin-Williams]] support using the term in order to accurately describe adolescent youths who may not identify as any common culturally-defined [[sexual identity]] label ([[lesbian]], [[gay]], [[bisexual]], ''et cetera'') but who still have attractions towards those of the same [[anatomical sex]] as themselves.<ref name=Savin-Williams1>Savin-Williams, Ritch C. "A critique of research on sexual-minority youths." Journal of adolescence 24.1 (2001): 5-13.</ref>

== Associated health and social issues ==
===Stress===
Social issues may lead to possible health and psychological issues, especially in youth. It has been found that sexual minorities face increased stress due to [[Social stigma|stigma]]s. This stigma-related stress creates elevated coping regulation and social and cognitive processes leading to risk for psychopathology.<ref name=":0">{{Cite journal|last=Hatzenbuehler|first=Mark L.|date=2009-09-01|title=How does sexual minority stigma "get under the skin"? A psychological mediation framework.|journal=Psychological Bulletin|language=en|volume=135|issue=5|pages=707–730|doi=10.1037/a0016441|issn=1939-1455|pmc=2789474|pmid=19702379}}</ref>

===Risky behavior===
The [[Centers for Disease Control]] (CDC) published their 2015 study of large cohorts of ninth to twelfth grade students across the US. One hundred health behaviors were shown to put LGB students at risk for health consequences. Sexual minority students engage in more risky behaviors when compared with nonsexual minority students. Some students "...had no sexual contact [and] were excluded from analyses on sexual behaviors [including] female students who had sexual contact with only females [and] were excluded from analyses on condom use and birth control use..." Also excluded were "...male students who had sexual contact with only males [and] were excluded from analyses on birth control use."<ref name = CDC2016/> One small study <!--nonMEDRS-->showed that LGBT adolescents were victimized more often, had higher rates of [[psychopathology]], left home more frequently, used highly addictive substances more frequently, and were more likely to have more [[multiple sex partners]] than heterosexual adolescents.<ref name=":0"/>

===Development===
Based on studies of adolescents, it is concluded that sexual minorities are similar to heterosexual adolescents in developmental needs and concerns. However, research has suggested that sexual minority youth (more specifically LGBT youth) are more susceptible to psychological and health issues than heterosexual youth.<ref name=":1">{{Cite journal|last1=Cochran|first1=Bryan N.|last2=Stewart|first2=Angela J.|last3=Ginzler|first3=Joshua A.|last4=Cauce|first4=Ana Mari|date=2002-05-01|title=Challenges Faced by Homeless Sexual Minorities: Comparison of Gay, Lesbian, Bisexual, and Transgender Homeless Adolescents With Their Heterosexual Counterparts|journal=American Journal of Public Health|volume=92|issue=5|pages=773–777|doi=10.2105/AJPH.92.5.773|pmid=11988446|issn=0090-0036|pmc=1447160}}</ref>

===Epidemiology===
Sexual minorities tend to use [[alternative and complementary medicine]] alternative methods of addressing their health needs more often than heterosexuals.<ref name = Blume2016>{{cite journal | title =Advances in Substance Abuse Prevention and Treatment Interventions Among Racial, Ethnic, and Sexual Minority Populations | journal = Alcohol Research: Current Reviews | first1 = Arthur W. | last1 = Blume |date = 2016 | volume = 38 | issue =1 | pages = 47–54 | pmc = 4872612 | pmid = 27159811 }}</ref> Sexual minority women have a higher incidence of [[asthma]], [[obesity]], [[arthritis]] and [[cardiovascular disease]] than other groups.<ref name="SimoniSmith2016">{{cite journal|last1=Simoni|first1=Jane M.|last2=Smith|first2=Laramie|last3=Oost|first3=Kathryn M.|last4=Lehavot|first4=Keren|last5=Fredriksen-Goldsen|first5=Karen|title=Disparities in Physical Health Conditions Among Lesbian and Bisexual Women: A Systematic Review of Population-Based Studies|journal=Journal of Homosexuality|volume=64|issue=1|year=2016|pages=32–44|issn=0091-8369|doi=10.1080/00918369.2016.1174021|pmid=27074088|pmc=5063711}}</ref>

Adolescent sexual minorities report a higher incidence of the following when compared to heterosexual students:

* feelings of not being safe travelling to and from school or in school.
* not going to school because they did not feel safe.
* forced to do sexual things they did not want to do by someone they were dating or going out with one or more times during the 12 months (touching, kissing, or physically forced to have sexual intercourse)
* had sexual intercourse.
* first had sex before age 13.
* had sex with at least four other people.
* not using birth control.
* had experienced sexual violence.<ref name = CDC2016/>

When compared to the general population, sexual minorities have a higher risk for self-injury.<ref name="JackmanHonig2016">{{cite journal|last1=Jackman|first1=Kate|last2=Honig|first2=Judy|last3=Bockting|first3=Walter|title=Nonsuicidal self-injury among lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender populations: an integrative review|journal=Journal of Clinical Nursing|volume=25|issue=23–24|year=2016|pages=3438–3453|issn=0962-1067|doi=10.1111/jocn.13236|pmid=27272643}}</ref> The treatment of aging sexual minorities seems to be influenced more by ageism. Support for aging sexual minorities appears to be common.<ref name="McParlandCamic2016">{{cite journal|last1=McParland|first1=James|last2=Camic|first2=Paul M|title=Psychosocial factors and ageing in older lesbian, gay and bisexual people: a systematic review of the literature|journal=Journal of Clinical Nursing|volume=25|issue=23–24|year=2016|pages=3415–3437|issn=0962-1067|doi=10.1111/jocn.13251|pmid=27167408|url=http://create.canterbury.ac.uk/14478/6/14478.pdf|access-date=2019-02-13|archive-date=2018-07-20|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180720115847/http://create.canterbury.ac.uk/14478/6/14478.pdf|url-status=dead}}</ref>

===Discrimination===
When gay, lesbian, and bisexual adults reported being discriminated against, forty-two percent credited it to their [[sexual orientation]]. This discrimination was positively associated with both harmful effects on quality of life and indicators of psychiatric morbidity.<ref name=":2">{{Cite journal|last1=Mays|first1=Vickie M.|last2=Cochran|first2=Susan D.|date=2001-11-01|title=Mental Health Correlates of Perceived Discrimination Among Lesbian, Gay, and Bisexual Adults in the United States|journal=American Journal of Public Health|volume=91|issue=11|pages=1869–1876|doi=10.2105/AJPH.91.11.1869|pmid=11684618|pmc=1446893|issn=0090-0036|citeseerx=10.1.1.628.2374}}<sup>[16-years old]</sup></ref> <!--In fact, sexual minority respondents were significantly more likely to have at least one of five psychiatric disorders examined in the research than heterosexual persons.<ref name=":2" /> The research on discrimination has built upon prior evidence that discrimination can lead to negative psychological changes. These negative changes are evident in the resulting health issues found in the surveyed adults.-->

== In the media ==
Sexual minorities are generally portrayed in the mass media as being ignored, trivialized, or condemned. The term [[symbolic annihilation]] accounts for their lack of characterization due to not fitting into the white, heterosexual, vanilla type lifestyle. It has been suggested that online media has developed into a space in which sexual minorities may use "social artillery". This description centers on how social networking and connections to oppose instances of homophobia.<ref>{{Cite journal|last1=PhD|first1=Paul Venzo|last2=PhD|first2=Kristy Hess|date=2013-11-01|title="Honk Against Homophobia": Rethinking Relations Between Media and Sexual Minorities|journal=Journal of Homosexuality|volume=60|issue=11|pages=1539–1556|doi=10.1080/00918369.2013.824318|issn=0091-8369|pmid=24147586|s2cid=37527336}}</ref> Still, some individuals have made their way into the media through television and music. TV shows such as ''[[The Ellen DeGeneres Show]]'' and ABC's ''[[Modern Family]]'' star individuals who are open about their non-heterosexual lifestyles. In music, people like [[Sam Smith]] and [[Sia]] have created songs that express their [[emotion]]s and sexuality with a number of followers. While sexual minorities do have a place in the media, it is often critiqued that they are still limited in their representations. In shows, if a character is gay, they are often a very shallow character that is only present for comic relief or as a plot twist. Compared to a heteronormative counterpart, the sexual minority is often a mere side-kick. However, since the integration of actors, musicians, and characters of sexual minorities, the idea of non-normativity has become more normalized in society.<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://tcjournal.org/drupal/vol4/bond|title=GLOing Depictions of Sexual Minorities: The Evolution of Gay- and Lesbian-Oriented Digital Media {{!}} Technoculture|website=tcjournal.org|access-date=2016-12-05|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20161220050024/https://tcjournal.org/drupal/vol4/bond|archive-date=2016-12-20|url-status=dead}}</ref>

==Cultural issues==
Current and past research has been "skewed toward SM men—and is disproportionately focused on HIV and other sexually transmitted infections." Between 1989 and 2011, numerous grants for research were sponsored and funded by the US National Institutes of Health (NIH) but funded research for sexual minorities and health made up 0.1% of all funded studies. Most research has been directed toward gay and bisexual men. Women sexual minority studies accounted for only 13.5%.<ref name="MullerHughes2016"/>

Sexual minorities in South Africa have sexual-orientation-related health inequities when compared to other countries. One of the highest prevalences of sexual violence directed toward women of a sexual minority occurs in South Africa. Women of color who are living in low income urban areas are notably targeted. The perpetrators of sexual violence believe they are "correcting the women", and their actions will cure them of their homosexuality.<ref name="MullerHughes2016">{{cite journal|last1=Muller|first1=Alexandra|last2=Hughes|first2=Tonda L.|title=Making the invisible visible: a systematic review of sexual minority women's health in Southern Africa|journal=BMC Public Health|volume=16|issue=1|pages=307|year=2016|issn=1471-2458|doi=10.1186/s12889-016-2980-6 |pmid=27066890|pmc=4827176}}</ref>

== Controversy ==
{{More citations needed section|date=March 2017}}

Some LGBT people object to using the term ''sexual minorities'' and prefer the term LGBT. Reasons for these objections may vary. For example, some LGBT people feel that the term ''sexual minority'' reminds them about discrimination and about being a minority. They want to be not a distinct minority but an integral and respectable part of the society. Some other LGBT people dislike the term for being too inclusive, including [[Swinging (sexual practice)|swinger]]s, [[Polyamory|polyamorist]]s, [[BDSM]] people and other perceived "sexual strangers". These LGBT people want to make a larger distance between these sexual practices and bisexuality/homosexuality/transgender.

Some [[transgender]] and [[transsexual]] people dislike the term ''sexual minority'' for yet another reason. They argue that the phenomenon of transsexuality or transgender has nothing to do with sex, sexual practices or [[sexual orientation]], but it relates to the [[gender]], gender dysphoria and gender-variant behavior or feelings. Thus, they feel it is incorrect to classify them as "sexual minority", when, in fact, they are [[Gender variance|gender-variant]] minority.

Some [[conservatism|conservative]] groups oppose the use of the term ''sexual minority'' for completely different reasons. They think or feel that the term inherently implies some degree of legalisation or protection for those engaged in such sexual practices, much like ethnic minorities are protected from being discriminated or persecuted in modern democratic countries.

Some people dislike the term because it includes ''minority'', when the fact is that not all these categories are really about minorities but actually about ''minorised'' groups.

Others referred to as "sexual minorities" include [[sexual fetishism|fetishists]] and practitioners in of [[BDSM|BDSM (bondage, dominance, and submission)]], and [[sadism and masochism]].<ref name=Savin-Williams1/> The term may also include [[asexuality|asexuals]]<ref>{{cite book|editor1-last=Morrison|editor1-first=Todd G.|editor2-last=Morrison|editor2-first=Melanie A.|editor3-last=Carrigan|editor3-first=Mark A.|editor4-last=McDermott|editor4-first=Daragh T.|title=Sexual Minority Research in the New Millennium|date=2012|isbn=978-1-61209-939-2|edition=hardcover, illustrated}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|last1=Robinson|first1=B. A.|title=Prejudice against the asexual community. Violence against asexual women|url=http://www.religioustolerance.org/asexual2.htm|access-date=12 March 2015}}</ref> and people whose choice of partner or partners is atypical, such as [[Swinging (sexual practice)|swingers]],<ref>Rust, Paula C. [http://mysite.du.edu/~jdonnell/papers/nl_gay_v3.pdf "The politics of sexual identity: Sexual attraction and behavior among lesbian and bisexual women."] ''Social Problems'' 39, no. 4 (1992) p. 8 "Sexual minorities are not merely people who engage in 'deviant' sexual behavior—for example, fetishists of various types—or even those that adopt 'deviant' (sexual) identities (e.g. 'swingers')."</ref> polyamorists<ref name="Nichols, Margaret">Nichols, Margaret, and M. I. C. H. A. E. L. Shernoff. "Therapy with sexual minorities." ''Principles and practice of sex therapy'' 4 (2000): 353-367.</ref> or people in other [[Forms of nonmonogamy|nonmonogamous relationship]]s, and those who have [[age disparity in sexual relationships|partners significantly older or younger than themselves]].<ref>{{cite book|last1=Altair|first1=Octaevius|title=The Violators: No Human Rights for You (Canada)|date=2011|isbn=9781257378012|page=11|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=eRrLAQAAQBAJ&pg=PA11|access-date=12 March 2015|quote=The rights of youth must be protected as well as the rights of Atheists and Sexual minorities. As a [[Homophile]] and [[Hebephilia|hebiphile]]. I engage is [''[[sic]]''] recreational sex exclusively with teenagers.}}</ref> It may also refer to people who are in a [[mixed-race relationship]].

Usually, the term ''sexual minority'' is applied only to groups who practice [[Informed consent#Sex|consensual sex]]: for example, it would be unusual to refer to [[rape|rapists]] as a sexual minority, but the term would generally include someone whose sexuality gave a major, fetishized role to consensual playing out of a [[rape fantasy]]. Also, someone who very occasionally incorporates of consensual [[kink (sexual)|kink]]<ref name="Nichols, Margaret"/> or same-sex activity into, heterosexual sex life would not usually be described as a ''sexual minority''.

== See also ==
{{Portal|LGBT|Human sexuality}}
{{div col}}
* [[Ascribed characteristics]]
* [[Bisexual community]]
* [[Human male sexuality]]
* [[Human sexuality]]
* [[Minority group]]
* [[Queer]]
* [[Sexual minorities in Japan]]
* [[Sexual minorities in Sri Lanka]]
* [[Sexuality and gender identity-based cultures]]
* [[Sociosexual orientation]]
* [[Tamil sexual minorities]]
{{Div col end}}

== Explanatory notes==
{{Notelist}}

== References ==
{{Reflist|30em}}

== External links ==
* {{wiktionary inline}}

{{Authority control}}

{{DEFAULTSORT:Sexual Minority}}
[[Category:LGBT]]
[[Category:Minorities]]
[[Category:Sexuality and society]]
[[Category:Social groups]]